Here in the western world we have so many comforts, so when these amenities (such as electricity) are occasionally withdrawn we often get some realizations. Specifically, late Mon. afternoon Feb. 27, the temple and guest lodge were plunged into darkness. It turned out that the main transformer for the whole temple complex was bad. Some of the faithful electrical (and other) experts, namely Varsana Swami, Gaurashakti, Gopisa, Tejo, and Tejo’s son Gopal worked quickly and efficiently to complete the installation of a new transformer- no small task- the very next day. In the meantime, the devotees had to be a bit creative to make up for the temporary loss.

One adjustment was the devotees took prasadam in the guest prasadam room instead of the main prasadam room because the skylights there provide plenty of natural light. Some guests from Pittsburgh even dropped by for lunch and they really didn’t suffer at all from the situation. As a matter of fact, they seemed to enjoy the intimate lunch by midday sunlight. Although some of the devotees did indeed begin to feel the chilly effects of the blackout, the unseasonably warm and sunny winter weather and the quick repair work contributed to making the whole experience tolerable.

Joni Mitchell says: “You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone.” I think even though the “off the grid” concept may hold great worth, that for now, many of the devotees were acknowledging the value of the comfort that electricity currently (pun intended!) brings to our lives.

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